Munthirivallikal Thalirkkumbol () is a 2017 Indian Malayalam-language domestic drama film directed by Jibu Jacob and written by M. Sindhuraj. It is loosely based on the Malayalam short story "Pranayopanishath" by V. J. James. Produced and distributed by Sophia Paul through Weekend Blockbusters, the film stars Mohanlal and Meena as panchayat secretary Ulahannan and his wife Annyamma. The soundtrack features songs composed by Bijibal and M. Jayachandran, and a film score by Bijibal. The film is about Ulahannan, a man having a midlife crisis, who rediscovers himself and overcomes boredom in his routine life.
Sindhuraj obtained the rights to adapt "Pranayopanishath" from James after it was first published in a Malayalam weekly. He developed a new story by setting it in a different background and adding additional characters, and by incorporating his own novelette Schoolilekku Poya Penkutty. In 2015, Paul was looking for a story for a film she was planning with Mohanlal in the lead role, and greenlit Sindhuraj's story. He began writing the screenplay that year and, Jacob was later hired to direct the film. Principal photography began on 15 July 2016 in Kozhikode, Kerala, where over eighty percent of the film was shot. Additional scenes were filmed at locations in Alappuzha; filming ended in Shimla in October.
Munthirivallikal Thalirkkumbol was scheduled to be released in India on 22 December 2016 during Christmas. Its release was delayed due to a strike in the Malayalam film industry, which halted the screening of Malayalam films in Kerala. The film's opening date was rescheduled, and it was released in India on 20 January 2017. It was well received at the box office, and Mohanlal received the National Film Award – Special Jury Award for his performance in the film.
Plot
Ulahannan "Unnachan", a middle-aged secretary in Keezhattur panchayat, is bored with his monotonous life and no longer cares for his wife Annyamma. She feels the same and no longer shares his bed. Ulahannan's routine includes dozing on the bus ride to his office, where there are only loafers sitting around. He often encounters Lillykutty who flirts with him. Every night at home he sits on the terrace drinking alcohol with his neighboursVenukuttan, Jacobettan, Monai, and Benny.
At the insistence of an old friend, Ulahannan attends his college alumni reunion, where he meets his ex-lover Indulekha. They recall their past college life when Ulahannan was a firebrand activist. Indulekha, finds it hard to recognize the old Ulahannan, and learns of his humdrum life and his unhappiness. Before he leaves, Indulekha advises him to reinvigorate himself. He decides to redeem his life with love, and seeks the help of Venukuttan, a philanderer, who deceives his wife into thinking he is a loving husband. Venukuttan promises to introduce him to some of his girlfriends and teach him some of his tricks.
In the meantime, he meets Julie, a seductive NRI girl at his office, and begins a relationship with her by messaging and calling every day. Venukuttan is envious as he finds Julie more attractive than any of his paramours. When her husband Augustine shows up, Ulahannan becomes nervous over his tryst with Julie. He learns that Julie is a flirt herself, and he is only one of the men she is contacting.
The next night, while drinking alcohol, Venukuttan teases Ulahannan that his relationship with Julie is in vain. Provoked, Ulahannan challenges him to call one of his girlfriends and gave the phone to him when she answers. After hesitating, Venukuttan makes the call. Ulahannan speaks in a romantic voice, and the woman asks if it is Ulahannan calling. Shocked, he realizes it is Annyamma on the line. He is furious and starts shouting at Venukuttan. A man with an attractive voice named Jacobettan comes on the line. He is watching a video of a recorded song, and Annyamma is singing in her kitchen. Jacobettan tells him that Annyamma is helping the kids with the songs for the annual gathering program of the colony members. Ulahannan is surprised as he has forgotten that Annyamma can sing. This reminds him of the young Annyamma.
The next morning, a disguised Ulahannan secretly goes to church to make an offering to God he promised when he was in trouble over Julie. After the prayer, Ulahannan smells his favourite woman's perfume. He cannot see her face as she is hooded with her sari. He tells Jacobettan how attractive she is and asks if he can see her. While walking away, someone calls her, she turns and Ulahannan can see the woman is Annyamma. He realizes he has a beautiful wife and that he has not bothered about her for a long time.
Late one day, Annyamma finds a gift in Jini's wardrobe. She tells Ulahannan about the gift and about recent changes in Jini's behaviour. He says that asking for more information about the gift will affect Jini's studies. Ulahannan and Annyamma ask Jini's school friend and learn Jini is close to a man who was introduced to her by mutual friends. Ulahannan and Annyamma's fear over him grows daily. One day Ulahannan waits in front of Jini's school and sees her going to a hotel on her bicycle. Disguised, he sits in the hotel and hears his daughter break up with her boyfriend saying that now is the time to study, and she will have enough time for love after marriage. Ulahannan hugs his daughter and says that he is not worried about her behavior. Jini says that her boyfriend does not know how to love like her father. That night Ulahannan tells Annyamma about the incident and promises to take the family to a vineyard to see the grapevines sprout. The film ends with Annyamma taking responsibility for their daughter's mistake, realising that children should grow up seeing their parents love and affection.
Cast
Mohanlal as Ulahannan "Unnachan" Meena as Annyamma "Aamy" Aima Rosmy Sebastian as Jini Ulahannan Sanoop Santhosh as Jerry Ulahannan Anoop Menon as Venukuttan Srinda Arhaan as Latha, Venukuttan's wife Neha Saxena as Julie Augustine Karukapally Alencier Ley Lopez as Jacob "Jacobettan", Telecom operator, Ulahannan's friend Kalabhavan Shajohn as Monai Reshmi Boban as Alice Bindu Panicker as Girija Lishoy as Dasan Suraj Venjaramoodu as Thilothaman Sudheer Karamana as Chalakan Sharaf U Dheen as Reji Manju Pathrose as Lillykutty Rajesh Paravoor as Benny Suresh Krishna as Augustine, Julie's spouse Rahul Madhav as Josemon, Younger brother of Annyamma Ganapathi as Jithin Sohan Seenulal as Babu Meghanathan as Prabhakaran Joy Mathew as Ulahannan's friend K. L. Antony as Ulahannan's father Bindu Ramakrishnan as Ulahannan's mother Thrissur Elsy as Reethamma Leena Antony as Annyamma's mother Reena Basheer as Ulahannan's friend Revathy Sivakumar as Priya Ambika Mohan as Priya's mother Asha Sarath as Indulekha (Cameo appearance) Nandu as Priya's father (Cameo appearance) Sasi Kalinga as Shivan, Venukuttan's uncle (Cameo appearance)
Production Development Mohanlal announced an untitled film through his Facebook page on 26 June 2015, to be produced by Sophia Paul for Weekend Blockbusters, written by M. Sindhuraj, and directed by Jibu Jacob. At that point, the project was in its initial phase of development and the script was incomplete. The screenplay is loosely based on the Malayalam short story '"Pranayopanishath" by V. J. James. According to Sindhuraj he was inspired by the story, but the script is "not a page-to-page adaptation." According to Jacob, only the story's narrative thread has been used. Mohanlal plays a common character — a panchayat secretary named Ulahannan. "Pranayopanishath" tells the story of a middle-aged couple deciding to rekindle their romance after nineteen mundane years of married life.
The film was in development since 2015. Paul had Mohanlal's dates for a project and was looking for a story. After hearing about it, she liked Sindhuraj's story. Mohanlal agreed, and the project was greenlit. Sindhuraj saw a potential film when he first read "Pranayopanishath" and expressed his interest to James in adapting it into a screenplay. He envisioned a new story background, characters and living conditions, and developed it around Ulahannan and Aaniamma's circumstances. He also prepared the story by incorporating his own novelette Schoolilekku Poya Penkutty published in Vanitha. By this time, someone else had bought the film rights from James and drafted a screenplay. Sindhuraj told James that he would step back, but would still like to buy the rights if the other film did not materialise within a given time, which he eventually did. Sindhuraj thought of the film's tagline "My Life is My Wife" during his vacation in Sri Lanka, where he saw it written on an auto rickshaw. Jacob was hired to direct the film after the screenplay was drafted. At first he was not confident about directing the film, but he was moved after reading the short story published in Mathrubhumi Azhchappathippu magazine.
M. Jayachandran and Bijibal were signed as the film's composers, and Pramod K. Pillai as the cinematographer. Bijibal also composed the film's score. The film's title was announced in the middle of filming in September 2016. The title Munthirivallikal Thalirkkumbol (meaning: When the Grape Vines Sprout) was derived from the verses of the Song of Songs (Song of Solomon) in the Hebrew Bible. Paul also cites Padmarajan's 1986 film Namukku Parkkan Munthirithoppukal as an inspiration for the title. In a September 2016 interview, Paul described the film as a "fun-filled family drama," and said they were planning for a late-October release.
Casting Ulahannan, the leading character was tailor-made for Mohanlal. As of June 2015, the filmmakers were in the process of casting actors for other roles. For the female lead, Ulahannan's neglected homemaker wife, Sophia Paul wanted "a classy beauty" and Vidya Balan was her first choice. The synopsis impressed Balan, but she could not commit to the film due to scheduling conflicts. In December, Weekend Blockbusters announced that Meena had been signed for the role. She was cast by Jacob, who had initially thought about casting a newcomer, but later felt Meena was the right choice because of her experience and the good chemistry between her and Mohanlal. They had already collaborated on several successful films.
In March 2016, Weekend Blockbusters released a cast list including (apart from Mohanlal and Meena): Biju Menon, Nedumudi Venu, Aju Varghese, Suraj Venjaramoodu, Kalabhavan Shajohn, and Sudheer Karamana. Biju Menon was said to be playing a government employee even though he, Nedumudi Venu and Aju Varghese were not part of the final cast. In June, Aima Rosmy Sebastian was confirmed in the role of Ulahannan's daughter, Jini, a class 12 student. Aju Varghese first informed her of a potential role in the film while they were working on Jacobinte Swargarajyam (2016), and asked her to set aside a few months for it. According to Aima, Jini somewhat resembled her, which helped her portray the role. Ulahannan's son Jerry's casting was yet to be finalised as of June. Finally, Sanoop Santhosh played his seven-year-old son.